DELETE THIS ACCOUNT!

Excellent thread and congrats on your success! I personally gauge my own success by how healthy I am. When I was over 400 pounds I had obstructive sleep apnea, high blood pressue, borderline diabetic, and I needed a cane just get around my house. I had to use a motorized scooter just to do my grocery shopping and even that was exhausting. Now, not only is the sleep apnea gone but I don't even snore anymore. My blood pressure is normal, I am no longer borderline diabetic, and not only do I not need a cane anymore but I walk 2 miles a day with ease (and I seriously love my walks!) I've had some incredible NSV's too I flew on an airplane for the first time in 15 years and didn't need a seat belt extender I can cross my legs for the first time in 20 years I've gone from a size 46 (not kidding, I needed a 7x) to a size 18 (almost 16 now) I can do the splits again (lol I was in gymnastics when I was young) I can sit in booths at restaurants without worrying if I'll fit People who've known me for years don't recognize me when they see me. Literally. I'm very active in my kids lives now. I'm no longer a bystander watching it pass me by from the sofa. To me, these things are my success much more than what the scale says. These things reflect how I feel and that is what matters to me.

Which I understand, but being on liquids is only going to make you hungrier and more prone to over eating because of it. If I were in your shoes, I'd increase your Protein. Protein really does fill you up a lot better than anything else.

I'm just curious, why are you doing a liquid diet? You need protein and the nutrients real food provides, a liquid diet is usually counter productive unless you have a slip or have stretched your pouch.

It really varies from one insurance company to another. Some won't cover anything for any reason, some will cover it if the surgeon can prove it's medically necessary (rashes, skin breakdown, etc).

Honestly, the lower the scale goes the more reluctant it is go down. You're doing everything your doctor recommends and you're burning more calories than you consume. The weight WILL come off it's just going to take some patience. A good example- when I weighed 400 pounds the weight literally just melted off. Like, crazy fast. Now that I'm inching towards onderland? Dear Lord I fight tooth and nail for every stink'n pound! Right now I'm about ready to toss my scale into the lake because instead of going down the pound I'm trying to lose, the dumb thing went up 1/2 a pound. Like you, I know I'm doing everything right and it's just natural body fluctuations, but jeez it's so frustrating. Hang in there and keep doing what you're doing and you WILL get there

Congratulations!!

NICE!! Did you hug her? I'd have totally hugged her lol!

If you're taking tiny bites and chewing thoroughly but still throwing up, then you're likely too tight. Btw, if you mean actually vomiting (rather than PBing) then you're putting yourself at risk for a slip. Vomiting is never good with the band and should be avoided at all costs. Call your doctor. Let him help you decide if you're too tight or not.

Yup mine is too. It's awful, I look like a Shar Pei naked. I haven't had surgery to remove it yet but you better believe I'm going to! LOL!

I am so sorry. Vomiting will definitely cause a slip, but what caused the vomiting? Was it a 4cc band by chance?

Congratulations! You're doing fabulous!

Protein powders: I'm a big fan of the unjury, the chocolate Splendor is my favorite. It can only be bought online though but here's the link to it: http://www.unjury.com/store/protein/ It cost $17.99 for a container that is 17 servings (+shipping) 1 scoop has 20g of protein The other brand I've been using lately is the Body Fortress Protein powder. It's not as good as the Unjury but it's not horrible. It's also a lot more affordable and you can buy it at Walmart. I like the Peanut Butter chocolate flavor. It costs $14.99 for a container that is 21 servings 1 scoop has 30g of protein

What is causing this? Especially with two bands?

How long did you have the band? What caused the slip?

I'm sorry you're struggling. It's hard to break old habits. The band is great at dimming hunger but unfortunately it can't change our brains. It's like the popular saying- the band goes around your stomach not your brain. I would seriously consider some sort of counseling to help you cope. You recognize there is a problem and the band can't help with it, which is a big step in itself, but just like the band is a tool so is a counselor. As far as fills, I'd be honest with your surgeon and let him help you decide. Best wishes.

Just don't scrub the incisions or steri strips. Wash the rest of you as usual but just let the Water run over the incisions without actually touching them. Don't be nervous, you'll probably feel a lot better once you get all that hospital ick off you!

Your doctor is right, it has nothing to do with your band. I would suggest seeing your family doctor about it rather than your band surgeon.

Head hunger is really hard to deal with. A popular saying around here is "the band goes around your stomach, not your brain". The bad is great at dimming the physical hunger but the head hunger is ours to deal with. I too have done what Cheznoel stated- taking just a very small bite of whatever I'm craving. I'm actually really careful to keep things I know are trigger foods and foods I'm likely to over eat out of the house, so if I really want some, I have to make a conscious effort to leave the house and buy it. Stick to your 1 cup portions regardless of head or physical hunger. It will get easier once you have adequate Fluid in your band. Best wishes.

Hang in there, I know how painfully discouraging it is, but you're on the right track and regaining control of the situation. And don't bother buying any clothes right now because by fall they'll all be way too big anyway

The average is 1-2 pounds a week, plus the first 4-6 weeks post surgery are for healing not losing, so yes it's very normal.

LOL that's too cute!

I had my surgery 14 months ago and still have a protein shake for breakfast every morning because I'm just too tight in the mornings for real food. By lunch time, I'm fine and eat normal.

I think a lot of us go through a sort of "last meal syndrome" before surgery. A lot of us actually go into a bit of a mourning process because we feel like we're losing our comfort and coping mechanism- food. We also have this mindset that you'll never be able to enjoy food again so we go bonkers eating everything in sight while we still can. I did this too, by the way. I didn't have a pre-op diet so I went nuts on food the week before surgery. I'm not proud of it and definitely wouldn't recommend it, but I definitely lost all food sanity for that last week. But here's the thing to remember and I wish someone would've told me when I was going nuts on food: It's not like you have to give up everything you love. You can still have what you love to eat (once you're past the post op healing diet) just in moderation. You don't have to say goodbye to food, you just have to learn to enjoy it in smaller amounts. The cool part is- the band helps you to do exactly that. I personally believe in moderation not deprivation. If I deprive myself I know I am setting myself up for failure. If I want pizza, I have a piece, not 6 like I used to. I have 1 cookie not 12. I have 1 scoop of ice cream not 5. The key for me is I don't have these things regularly and when I do, I do it in moderation and within my daily calorie allowance. But, nothing is off limits. Hang in there, this is a beautiful beginning for you, not an ending

You should definitely plan taking some time off to heal, but the healing process is a lot easier and faster than Gastric Bypass. The post op stages and length vary by surgeon, but most start with liquids, then mushy food, then soft food, then finally back to solid food. How long each phase lasts depends greatly on the surgeon.

Well I can tell you this, once you have the band and adequate Fluid in it, taking smaller bites and chewing thoroughly becomes a lot easier once you've stuck lol. Being stuck is no fun and sometimes even painful. For most of us, it's our first stuck episode that really gets us to start taking smaller bites and chewing our food until mush. It's not something we ever want to experience again. A lot of people find using baby utensils helpful to practice smaller bites. There's even different apps or your smart phone that are made to help you eat slower. Btw, you're doing a good thing to start thinking about stuff like bite size in advance. You'll do great